Monday — never an easy time for the outdoors enthusiast. After a weekend of adventure, returning to the humdrum work-a-day world can make one melancholy. To help ease the transition, every Monday we feature a 90 Second Escape — essentially, a 90-second video or slide show of a place you’d probably rather be: a trail, a park, a greenway, a lake … anywhere as long as it’s not under a fluorescent bulb.
Today’s 90-Second Escape: A Father’s Day Paddle.
Hana and I have a longstanding Father’s Day tradition: we take the Old Town Loon 138T out for a paddle.
I don’t recall how or exactly when this tradition began; like most traditions, I’m guessing it didn’t begin with establishing a tradition in mind. I bought the boat in the late 1998 thinking it was perfect for me and my then 3-year-old daughter. And it was: When her little arms grew tired of paddling, the boat was small enough that I could easily power it on my own. As the years passed, that became less and less a concern. What was a concern was that some day we would outgrow the boat; in anticipation I bought a used canoe a couple years back. By and large, though, we stick with the Loon 138T.
Perhaps what I love most about paddling together is that the confined space, the natural setting, the easy pace (we stick to flat water) combine for a good conversation. Nothing heavy, necessarily, more an opportunity to catch up on the smaller matters that help give a sense of the big picture. Yesterday’s trip was especially nice in that regard: Hana leaves for Western Carolina (go Catamounts!) in the fall and, if personal history is any indication, those conversations will become increasingly difficult to come by. So …
Background properly set, tag along for 90 seconds worth of our most recent Father’s Day Paddle, yesterday at Jordan Lake.
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